selective estrogen receptor modulator

noun

: any of a class of drugs (such as raloxifene or tamoxifen) that bind with estrogen receptors (as of the breast, uterus, or bone) and act as agonists to enhance estrogen activity in some tissues and as antagonists to inhibit estrogen activity in other tissues

… a selective estrogen receptor modulator, or SERM, has estrogenlike effects on bone but acts like an antiestrogen in breast and uterine tissue, thus protecting against hormone-stimulated cancers …

—Jane E. Brody

called also SERM

Examples of selective estrogen receptor modulator in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Tamoxifen What It’s Approved For Tamoxifen belongs to a group of drugs called selective estrogen receptor modulators, or SERMs. —Laura Hensley, Verywell Health, 29 Nov. 2023

In 1998, the FDA approved Tamoxifen, an anti-estrogen medication and a pioneer drug in the selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) class. —Jon Hu, Forbes, 4 May 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1994, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

selective estrogen receptor modulator

noun

: any of a class of drugs (as raloxifene or tamoxifen) that bind with estrogen receptors (as of the breast, uterus, or bone) and act as agonists to enhance estrogen activity in some tissues and as antagonists to inhibit estrogen activity in other tissues

… a selective estrogen receptor modulator, or SERM, has estrogenlike effects on bone but acts like an antiestrogen in breast and uterine tissue, thus protecting against hormone-stimulated cancers …

—Jane E. Brody, The New York Times

Selective estrogen receptor modulators, a newer group of agents, maximize the beneficial effects of estrogen on bone and minimize its deleterious effects on the breast and endometrium.

—Charles Marwick, The Journal of the American Medical Association

called also SERM